AIDS benefit
featuring homophobic acts canceled under pressure

The music industry AIDS charity LIFEbeat on Wednesday canceled an HIV awareness concert featuring homophobic reggae artists under pressure from a campaign mounted by black gay activists and bloggers. LIFEbeat announced the cancellation on its Web site, blaming what it called the "firestorm incited by a select group of activists." The LIFEbeat statement said that the "possibility of violence" made "canceling the event the only responsible action." The coalition of gay African-American activists who organized the campaign against the performances by Beenie Man and TOK applauded the decision as a "small victory in the fight against homophobia." But they blasted LIFEbeat's finger pointing. They said in a statement that no one in their group ever threatened violence against anybody or even demanded the concert's cancellation. They said they wanted LIFEbeat merely to use its influence to persuade the reggae performers to renounce their history of homophobic songs and statements. "The sad part is that LIFEbeat still doesn't get it," activist Keith Boykin wrote in his blog, adding, "Their statement fails to address the issue of homophobia and its connection to the spread of HIV/AIDS." (Sirius OutQ News)